Europa Food Market
5243 W. Broad St.
Owners: Husband-and-wife Sergey and Simona Fayvusovich
Opened: Europa Market debuted in Midlothian in November 2016, before relocating to the Willow Lawn area in July 2022.
Specialties: The market is stocked with unique products from across Europe and New York, including breads and sandwich rolls; imported condiments; tinned seafood; and beer, cider and wine. Part store, part deli, it’s a top-notch spot for breakfast or lunch.
Aisle Finds: Polish pierogies, all sorts of jarred pickles and krauts, golabki (Polish stuffed cabbage), Haribo German candies.
Favorite Bites: The Roast My Beef Sandwich, with rare kosher roast beef and horseradish sauce on a brioche bun, is outstanding. And don’t sleep on the fresh New York bagels and bialys.
Tan A Supermarket
6221 W. Broad St.
Owners: My Le Tran and family
Opened: Tan A made its start in 1990, originally in two houses along Horsepen Road. In 2002, the business took over a former drugstore location, allowing the owners to expand their offerings.
Specialties: Pan-Asian ingredients abound at this grocery store, where you’ll find fresh produce, seafood and butcher counters, noodles, sauces and an abundance of frozen dumplings. The excellent selection of candy and snacks includes Thai varieties of Lay’s potato chips. Try the Mieng Kam Krob Ros flavor, inspired by the appetizer of the same name; they’re herbaceous with a hint of citrus.
Aisle Finds: Perhaps the most extensive selection of prepackaged ramen in town. Searching for dumpling wrappers or fresh noodles? Check the fridge and freezer cases.
Favorite Bites: I can’t make a trip to Tan A without grabbing a pack of what I call “impulse spring rolls” at the register — a trio of plump shrimp rolls in rice paper with a side of peanut sauce for under $3 is a magical thing.
Mediterranean Bakery & Deli
9004 Quioccasin Road
Owner: Saba Abed
Opened: Mediterranean Bakery has been serving loyal customers for almost 30 years. It originally opened in 1994, before relocating to its current location in 1999.
Specialties: At this concentrated retail venture, expect to discover Persian and Middle Eastern ingredients such as sumac (a tangy red berry used as a spice throughout the region) and other plentiful and affordable Ziyad-brand spices. Mediterranean Bakery also excels at catering.
Aisle Finds: In the refrigerated case toward the front of the store awaits all the tangy, yogurt-y goodness one could imagine. Thick, creamy labneh and briny feta always end up in my cart, as does a pint of the bright and herbaceous tabouli.
Favorite Bites: The bakery has gained a following for its fatayer, triangles of soft dough stuffed with spinach and feta or meat, available as a combo meal with two sides and a drink.
Laxmi Palace
3423 Old Parham Road
Owner: Kamlesh Kundalia
Opened: 2002
Specialties: Self-proclaimed largest Indian grocery store in Virginia; vegetarian foods.
Aisle Finds: Stock up on bulk spices such as coriander, cumin and cardamom, and let your sweet tooth guide you to the freezer section filled with Indian ice creams.
Favorite Bites: There’s an entire aisle dedicated to spicy pickled food, from mango to eggplant to bitter gourd, any of which will add bold, sour heat to the plate.
New Grand Mart
7415 Midlothian Turnpike; 9035 W. Broad St.
Owner: Green Paradise Enterprises
Opened: The original New Grand Mart opened in Falls Church in 2013. Richmond’s first outpost debuted in 2015 (Midlothian Turnpike), and a second (West Broad Street) followed in 2017.
Specialties: Known for its expansive collection of Korean ingredients, New Grand Mart also includes some Latino and Middle Eastern items, plus fresh seafood and tons of produce you can’t find anywhere else. Look for sushi-grade fish and live shellfish, including blue crabs.
Aisle Finds: This is one of my favorite spots to shop for tropical and hard-to-find fruit, including mangoes, fresh tamarind, passionfruit and dragon fruit. Don’t miss the array of fresh tofu tucked into a refrigerated case near the produce section.
Favorite Bites: On a cold day, it doesn’t get better than a bubbling crock of gochu jjamppong, a spicy Korean seafood and noodle soup.
Cielito Lindo
6003 W. Broad St.
Owner: Araceli Lagunas
Opened: The grocer, restaurant and humble cultural hub, which translates to “pretty little heaven,” has been open for more than 20 years. Its proprietor originally worked at Cielito Lindo before taking over the business, and she can often be seen in the kitchen making pupusas and tortillas by hand.
Specialties: The Central American market features a deli counter, a pastry case stocked with conchas (shell-shaped treats), spices and chiles, and a produce area with everything from cactus to tomatillos and aloe vera.
Aisle Finds: Perfectly ripe avocados and plantains from Mexico, tamarind and mango candy lathered in Tajin, fresh blocks of queso fresco and handmade tortillas.
Favorite Bites: Some of the best pupusas in the city, served from the bustling sit-down eatery at the back of the store. At lunchtime, expect to find the parking lot packed with trucks and vans, and inside, tables dotted with hungry construction workers in paint-spattered T-shirts. Breakfast is also booming, with families filling out the tables.
Island Hub Caribbean Market
6856 Midlothian Turnpike, Suite 104
Owners: The family-run operation is helmed by Carlton Chambers and his daughter, Tracy. Born in Western Jamaica, Carlton spent 30 years in New York working as a teacher before relocating to Richmond last year to help with the business.
Opened: May 2023
Specialties: Island Hub offers a glimpse into Caribbean cuisine, carrying Jamaican goods such as curry, fish and jerk seasonings; cans of ackee fruit and callaloo (Jamaican spinach); bags of dried sorrel; and plenty of juices and snacks. Find fresh oxtails in the freezer, bags of salted cod and Scotch bonnet peppers, and a produce section boasting giant chunks of ginger, yellow yams, Jamaican pumpkin squash, and fruits such as soursop and breadfruit.
Aisle Finds: Sorrel and lemon flavors of Red Stripe beer; tonic wine, a Caribbean blend of sparkling water, white grape and grapefruit juice, and minerals; Golden Krust breads; and Jamaican sugar buns and cakes.
Favorite Bites: A tart and refreshing bottle of pink Ting, a zingy, popular Jamaican soft drink, paired with a sugar bun studded with raisins and spices.
The Mantu Market
7510 W. Broad St.
Owners: Hamidullah and Lailuma Noori, Ali Karimi
Opened: Chef Hamid Noori introduced The Mantu restaurant in Carytown in 2019; in August 2022, the namesake market followed.
Specialties: Halal meat; fresh produce; frozen foods; authentic Afghan, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean spices; condiments; desserts; and fresh, tandoor-baked naan made daily. There is also a deli counter serving bolani flatbreads, dumplings and more.
Aisle Finds: Boxes of saffron baklava, 10-pound bags of rice, dried fruits and nuts.
Favorite Bites: Mantu’s eponymous dumplings are worth a special trip, and while you’re there, score some beef koobideh, traditional grilled kebabs.
EJ’s Filipino Store
224 S. 15th Ave., Hopewell
Owners: Emily and Ricky Muscat
Opened: The original store opened in 2017 before moving to its current, larger digs that also features a weekend-only eatery. The Muscats immigrated to the U.S. from the Philippines in their mid-20s. After Ricky retired from the military, they decided to introduce EJ’s, which is named for the first and middle initials of their three daughters. In 2022, they also premiered a food truck.
Specialties: Family-run EJ’s is one of the only dedicated Filipino markets in the region, and Emily says it attracts customers across the state from Chesterfield to Farmville. Spot Filipino ingredients and goods such as dried noodles and cans of jackfruit and coconut, along with seasonings, pastes, vinegars (cane and coconut) and spices.
Aisle Finds: Frozen foods including lumpia, pork buns, and ube and boba ice cream; a bounty of ingredients for the icy, Filipino dessert halo-halo; guanabana and soursop juices; premade mixes for bibingka and pichi-pichi; jars of pickled green papaya and bitter melon; and snacks like Moby caramel puffs.
Favorite Bites: A bag of sweet and buttery frozen shortbread cookies distributed by a popular Filipino bakery chain, Goldilocks. On Saturdays and Sundays, Emily runs a restaurant from the tiny house connected to the market, serving a tight menu of dishes such as lumpia, pancit and halo-halo.
Watan Market
8032 W. Broad St.
Owner: Abdullah Zarify
Opened: June 2023
Specialties: A rug store and market rolled into one, offering hand-woven Turkish carpets in the back and Middle Eastern groceries, snacks, spices and frozen goods in the front. Stay tuned for a halal butcher counter and kitchen with prepared foods to debut in the coming months.
Aisle Finds: Persian limes, loose teas, bags of legumes, authentic Afghan naan, spices such as mace — commonly used in curries and stews — along with Watan Market brand sella rice. Containers of quroot (balls of salted, condensed, dried yogurt), along with fenugreek seeds and teff grains. A beverage case is stocked with everything from Thai energy drink Carabao to pomegranate and mango juices and KDD chocolate milk from Kuwait.
Favorite Bites: Frozen chicken samosas make an ideal at-home snack, while the bottled basil-seed milkshake dotted with boba is dessert in a glass.
La Milpa
6925 Hull Street Road
Owners: Mexico natives Martin Gonzalez and Monica Chavez
Opened: In 2000, after Gonzalez became a U.S. citizen. Chavez became his co-owner in 2013. The duo are partners in business and life.
Specialties: At the Latin grocery store, a longtime hub for the local Mexican community, barbacoa, chorizo, suadero and al pastor meat are sold by the pound, while the produce selection, grown down the road at the owners’ farm, is a showcase of what’s in season.
Aisle Finds: Corn husks for tamales, prickly pear and dried peppers.
Favorite Bites: Also boasting a restaurant — open daily until midnight — La Milpa dishes out a wide assortment of tacos and has a salsa bar with a dozen-plus housemade selections.
